Fulham manager Roy Hodgson feels it is important to recognise the enormous pressure that Premier League players have to face on a weekly basis.
The Cottagers boss said: “If you could imagine, every Saturday you’re being judged.
“Every Saturday someone is saying to you ‘you’re a success or failure’.
“But I never say to players ‘we have got to win today’. I tell them ‘you have to perform and if you do your job trust us to get the other bits right’.”
Hodgson, who says he prefers to be referred to as the club’s coach, added: “You can’t legislate for anything in this game.
“All you can legislate for is that the players are physically and mentally prepared for the game and are as highly motivated as they can be and are really determined to do their job.”
But, despite the pressures that Hodgson highlights, he says he has great faith in his squad.
“I’m very happy this year,” he explained.
“I have a group of players around me that I trust, that, when they lose matches, I don’t feel angry with them, I feel sorry for them.
“I believe, after a defeat, that they’re probably feeling as down as I am and are as disappointed as I am that they have not been able to do the job as they would like to do that week.
Last season Fulham narrowly escaped relegation, with their fate decided on the final day of the season when they beat Portsmouth to secure their survival in the top-flight.
And Hodgson feels the Cottagers’ fans deserve credit for helping them stay up.
He added: “It looked for a long time that we were going to get relegated.
“But I thought the support at the home games was really quite fantastic and you need to know it is very much appreciated by not only the players but by everyone around the club.
“It’s very nice when you can re-pay the fans’ trust and encouragement by some good performances.”
